5.10. SR 06-03-1996 - Laserfiche WebLink

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Development Creating Vision Celebrate commanee Stake Evaluate Holders Commu=~7 coo, e~ COMMUNITY V~o~-~ DEVELOPMENT ~=p~m~t PROCESS W~,~blish Plato Vision Strategies Goals Resource Task Problm~s Forces Planning families in the region are considered, along with sensim4ty to the community's overall environmental concerns. Barriers to development, such as inadequate housing and shortages of a qualified labor force can be more easiiy addressed within this context. Lack of housing, for example, can be addressed by the whole community, spurring more innovative and creative solutions. Labor force development can be tackled as a partnership between business and education, with a focus on · sustaining the overall community. Second, support for children and families can become a priority that crosses all sectors, from education, social serx~ce and religious groups, to business and ban'king. When the community focuses on its children as the leaders, business owners and labor force of the future, they become a primary resource that must be pro- tected, educated and nourished. The stresses facing today's families, then, become a community problem of high priority. Youth involvement in commu- nity actixfties can provide a training ground for good citizenship and build the ownership that will engage the next generation in sustaining and growing the community. Third, stewardship for the community's natural resources can become everyone's responsibility, with a cross section of people developing and enforcing plans and guidelines. When all viewpoints are considered early in the planning process, conflicts between development and environmental protection can be reduced, and solutions successfully achieved that preserve the quality, of life in the communit7. Initiative fund support The Central Minnesota Initiative Fund is a regional foundation based in Litfle Fails, Minnesota. Its mission is to strengthen communities, families and the labor force. Through its business financing programs, nonprofit grants, training and special initiatives, it has invested over $16 million in the 14 county region of Central Minnesota. The Initiative Fund assists communities with local development efforts through its Community Partnership Program. In this program, a combination of leader- ship training and grant funding is provided over a two-year period to help community leaders with visioning and planning that guide development activities. Here are some examples: · The Waverly Area Visionary Empow- erment (WAVE) Project is concen- trating on enhancing the quality of life for citizens. New community signs have been erected, a local newsletter is in publication, and downtown improvements are under wa),. They are now planning a historical museum honoring Hubert H. Humphrey. · The Hewitt Revitalization Group is working in five areas: supporting What do growth and development really mean? PAULWILSON According to our current mindset, economic development is usually assumed to mean the same thing as economic growth; the result is expanding resources. But is that assumption necessarily correct? Growth means an increase in size or number. Development, on the other hand, means bringing something to a fuller or better state. A society can certainly grow without developing. Consider economist Herman Daly's example of a steady-state library. The stock of boo 'ks is constant but not static. As a book wears out or becomes obsolete, it's replaced by a newer or better one. The quantity of boo 'ks does not grow, and the quali~' of the library actually improves. The library develops without growing. Sustainable development of human culture means improving the quality of human life while living within the carrying capacity of supporting ecosystems. What is sustained is not a rate of growth, but rather a level of physical resource use. What is developed is the capacity to convert those physical resources into improved goods and services for satis ,fying human needs, without degrading the supporting systems. Ir Reprinted by permission from. *¢'~-glng Direction: 'l'ow~rd SUStmnable Culture,' cop,~t J~uary 1996 b.v Nm'tMo~ R~lx~ . A N~ of ~i~ A'orthza~ Ar~ MINNESOTA CITIES / APRIL 1996 9